FAIRFAX, Va. – It was a back and forth affair, but the Saint Joseph's men's tennis team ultimately fell to George Mason, 4-3, in the Hawks' final road contest of the season.

Saint Joseph's (6-12 overall, 1-7 Atlantic 10) took the early lead with a sweep of the completed doubles matches. Peter DeWitt and Dan Tan rolled in the second flight, winning at love, before Andre Fick and Tim Stierle sealed the point with a 6-4 first-flight win. Scott Battaglia and Johnnie Massart held a lead in the third as well, two points from victory when play was halted.

George Mason (8-14 overall, 2-6 Atlantic 10) went ahead with wins in the third and fourth singles flights, but Stierle came away with a 6-3, 6-3 win in the first and Fick added a 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 win in the second to put the Hawks back in front.

Unfortunately for the Crimson and Gray, the Patriots won the sixth flight to level the match before taking the fifth in a tiebreak to snatch the overall result.

“It was a tough loss today against George Mason,” assistant coach Marc Pibernat said. “After winning the doubles point, the team went into singles play maybe relying a little too much on that doubles point, and GMU took advantage of that by winning four singles matches.

“Our mindset needs to be on tomorrow's first match against La Salle, followed by Lehigh and our Senior Day recognition.”

The Hawks will wrap up the regular season on Sunday with the aforementioned doubleheader against La Salle and Lehigh. The Hawks will host the Explorers at 9:00 a.m. before taking on the Mountain Hawks at 1:00 p.m. Following the Lehigh match, the Hawks will honor their departing seniors for their dedication to the program.

George Mason 4, Saint Joseph's 3

Doubles
1. Andre Fick / Tim Stierle (SJU) def. Daniel Gutierrez / Pally Ray (GMU), 6-4
2. Peter DeWitt / Dan Tan (SJU) def. Edward Ayers / Jakob Nielsen (GMU), 6-0
3. Scott Battaglia / Johnnie Massart (SJU) led Carter Bradford / Giuliano Buzoianu (GMU), 5-4, 30-0
Order of Finish: 2, 1

Singles
1. Stierle (SJU) def. Ayers (GMU), 6-3, 6-3
2. Fick (SJU) def. Gutierrez (GMU), 6-3, 4-6, 6-4
3. Nielsen (GMU) def. DeWitt (SJU), 6-3, 6-2
4. Bradford (GMU) def. Massart (SJU), 6-1, 6-0
5. Ray (GMU) def. Tan (SJU), 7-6 (4), 1-6, 7-6 (4)
6. Buzoianu (GMU) def. Luis Janko (SJU), 6-2, 6-0
Order of Finish: 4, 3, 1, 2, 6, 5

Game Scores
Singles: George Mason 70, Saint Joseph's 54
Doubles: Saint Joseph's 17, George Mason 8
Total: George Mason 78, Saint Joseph's 71